Pages

Thursday, June 30, 2011

I want to take the time to thank Dani Harper for taking time out of her busy schedule to answer my questions.

About Dani Harper

Dani Harper, author of Changeling Moon, writes paranormal romance, blogs about the paranormal, watches paranormal TV and movies, and reads paranormal books of almost any kind. So it's only natural that werewolves, faeries, ghosts and other supernatural creatures populate her stories. She lives on an island in Southeast Alaska with her fisherman husband. Her stories get written on land or at sea with the help of her executive secretary, Fiona the Pug.

Now on to the interview

When were you bitten by the writing bug?

Maybe it's a stray gene from some old Irish or Welsh roots, but I wanted to write stories before I could read! I had a fascination with books from a very early age -- we're talking toddler here. I carried them around, slept with them, scribbled in them (editing, obviously), chewed the corners off them (trying to internalize the stories?) and generally wore them out. I remember sitting outside on the doghouse (very Snoopy-esque!) with a humongous sheaf of paper, "writing" an epic novel in orange crayon. No pictures, just pages and pages of squiggly lines that only made sense to me.

Did you find it hard to get into the writing industry?

I've accumulated the very same giant teetering pile of rejection slips that 99.999 percent of all authors do. In 2007, I broke into the e-pub world with a book and couple of novellas, but things really didn't start moving for me until I found an agent -- and that took an even LONGER time and even MORE rejection slips. I was so thrilled and excited when I discovered an agent who believed in me and my story -- but there are no words to describe what it was like when she phoned me to tell me that Kensington wanted my book!

What sets your Changeling series apart from other similar series in the same genre?

I've built my concept of Changelings from European legends of garwolves -- creatures that retain their humanity when they're in animal form. And what I enjoy most is the "ordinariness" of their lives that allows them to hide in plain sight! Anyone, anywhere, might be a Changeling -- your next-door neighbor, the clerk at the grocery store, the policeman patrolling the streets . . . However, all that humanity doesn't make the inner wolf tame, and being a Changeling means living with an alter-ego that sometimes has ideas of its own.

Do you have any say in your cover art?

Yes and no. I had a little bit of input when we were discussing the initial concept for the series covers. By the time I get to see a cover now, it's pretty much a done deal. I feel very fortunate to have such wonderful artwork -- many readers have mentioned that the covers are really pretty.

It's probably a good thing that I'm not in charge of the design. My love of scary movies would probably get the best of me and there'd be big teeth and glowing eyes and blood and whatnot on the covers!

Do you find it daunting to write an ongoing series? And how do you continue to keep the story line fresh?

Writing my Changeling series isn't daunting unless the characters aren't talking to me at the moment. Overall, Connor Macleod and his siblings popped up almost fully formed, with their own personalities and names and so forth. They're very different from each other, each with his or her own issues, and that certainly helps to keep things fresh because there are different things to overcome and to learn.

What can we expect from you next?

Changeling Dream is the second book, and it comes out on June 28th. Changeling Dawn is slated for release in January 2012. And yes, I'm working on Books 4, 5 and 6 at present.

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

"Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly event, hosted by “Breaking the Spine”, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

My Pick This Week

* Click book to go to Goodreads page. *

Description

When Link joined his best friend, Ethan Wate, on a quest through a mysterious network of underground passageways endlessly crisscrossing the South, he knew the journey would be dangerous. But returning home to Gatlin, South Carolina was just the beginning...

Wounded during a climactic battle, Link discovers that tending his injuries won't be as simple as visiting a doctor and that healing his arm should be the least of his worries. For being bitten by a Supernatural does more than break the skin -- it changes a person, inside and out, turning Link into someone more and more like the dark creature who injured him.

In this never-before-seen short story by New York Times bestselling authors Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl, readers witness Link's heart-racing transformation. Dream Dark is set before the much-anticipated third Beautiful Creatures novel, Beautiful Chaos, and as a special bonus includes an exclusive sneak peek at the first five chapters. (Goodreads)

Book Details

Genre: YA, Paranormal

Format: Kindle Edition

File Size: 5 KB

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

To Publish: August 2, 2011

Sold by: Hachette Book Group

ASIN: B0054LDAZ2

Why I’m Waiting

I am a HUGE fan of The Caster Chronicles and when I found out that Link was going to get his own short story, I just happened to be on the phone with Kelly and I started yelling in her ear about it. We are both from South Carolina so having some of the places we know pop up is a lot of fun. Also all of these books are beautifully written and keep you on the edge of your seat from beginning to end.

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Description

In times of stress Jillian Descharme has always found calm in her dream of a great white wolf with haunting blue eyes. But she is startled when the visions return and this time seem so real. Late at night he comes to her, speaks to her, touches her. It’s almost as if he’s alive…

Thirty years ago James Macleod lost his wife and unborn child to a killer bent on destroying the Changelings. Though he longed for death, his animal instinct fought for survival and James has been a wolf ever since. Yet now a woman has reawakened the man in him, taming wild instincts but arousing still wilder needs. With his ancient enemy hunting the legendary white wolf, James must fight for new life, new hope, new love. (Goodreads)

Book Details

Review

I love it when an author has a series that flows from one book to the next, but still moves forward with the story while introducing new characters. Dani Harper does just that in Changeling Dream.

In so many paranormal Romance novels the two main characters have no history together yet within the first few chapters they are slapped together and having sex for no reason. This is not the case in Changeling Dream. Jillian and James (main characters and love interest) separately have a past that only the other can heal, and even though James doesn’t remember it he has saved Jillian once before. Don’t get me wrong they have their HOT moments and when it happens you are so ready for it…

Something I truly enjoyed was that the author didn’t make one character stronger than the other, even though James is a changeling he needs Jillian just as much as she needs him. Another character that really stuck out was Birkie. Birkie is James’ brothers receptionist and long time family friend. She works with Jillian and soon becomes her best friend. Birkie provided a lot of laugh out loud moments. I loved her character.

My only problem with Changeling Dream was that I wanted more in the villain department. It felt very lacking there. Other than that I loved this one. Though this is the second book in the series, Changeling Dream could easily stand on its own.

Happy Reading,

Rebecca

4 moons: I loved it. It's reread worthy.

Recommended For

Adults: For sex scenes and violence.

Other Books in this Series

* Please stop back by Thursday for a Interview with Dani Harper and a Giveaway for Changeling Moon and the proof copy of Changeling Dream

Monday, June 27, 2011

Description

When Wendy Everly was six-years-old, her mother was convinced she was a monster and tried to kill her. It isn't until eleven years later that Wendy finds out her mother might've been telling the truth. With the help of Finn Holmes, Wendy finds herself in a world she never knew existed - and it's one she's not sure if she wants to be a part of. (Goodreads)

Book Details

Review

Amanda Hocking is self-published and you can get this book for .99 on Amazon.com, however it is worth more than a dollar. There are errors throughout the book, it could have used one more edit for grammar, but it didn’t bother me that much and I am all for supporting good indie authors.

Wendy should have had everything she wanted or needed, but her mother tries to kill her on her sixth birthday, guess she shouldn’t have complained about the cake, and ends up in a mental institution. She is raised by her brother Matt and Aunt Maggie, who are very protective and try to make up for having a suck-tastic mother. They move around a lot, because Wendy has trouble fitting in pretty much everywhere. Then in her newest school, she notices the even newer kid staring at her all the time, which would be Finn; tall, dark and handsome. After her first school dance, which didn’t go well, Finn shows up outside her bedroom window to tell her…she is a ….Troll.

Trolls live in a secluded area in Minnesota and prefer to be called Trylle. They look like normal people, but they have frizzy, hard- to- manage hair, are very intelligent, have quick tempers and don’t like wearing shoes (I fit that description, maybe I’m a troll). They are also very picky eaters, they only like natural food and seem to be some kind of vegetarians. Wendy mentions eating like a vegan, but I have a hard time imagining trolls that don’t eat any type of animal or using any animal products. Which is something I had a hard time with in the book… when I think trolls, I think Shrek; green, big feet , bad teeth and all that. It was hard to re-imagine the troll image, but hopefully this series can give a different side to trolls…um Trylle.

Things don’t get any better once Wendy ends up in Forening, the Trylle town, because she clashes with their way of life and whole system of hierarchy, which is bad, seeing as she is the Princess.

I liked the book and found the story engaging, but I didn’t really care for Wendy. I thought she was wimpy and self-involved, but she is a teenager and I was pretty self-involved when I was her age. The supporting cast of characters (Matt, Rhys, Willa) made up for Wendy’s flaws. I loved Tove and I can’t wait to see how his abilities work out in the story. I liked Tove so much that I want him to be Wendy’s love interest. I am going to read the rest of the series, because I’ve got to know what happens to everyone. Even with flaws it was a good book and I will be keeping my eye on Amanda Hocking.

Friday, June 24, 2011

Q. In light of the Summer Solstice. Also known as Midsummer...let's talk about fairies. What is your favorite fairy tale or story that revolves around the fae?

This is an easy one for me. The Fever Series by Karen Marie Moning. They are all so well written you can read them again and again. Ok, so maybe it helps that the characters are super hot! Anyway if you have not read this series you should give it a try. I loved them!

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Description

A vampire with a past she prefers to forget meets up with a remnant of the life she once knew. The desire for a revenge she had given up on getting resurfaces as her past comes back to haunt her new life. (Goodreads)

Book Details

Genre: Urban Fantasy

Review

Dead Wrong is a short, dark Urban Fantasy that surprisingly, when you’re finished reading, feels as though you have read a full novel. My biggest problem with the story almost had me pass it up from the start. It happened within the first four pages, the main character Shiva has sex out in the open for pretty much no other reason then to blow off steam. Now this is just my opinion but for me it would have made more sense for there to have been a fight scene between the two main characters to start with and have a little longer beginning than a meaningless sex scene to jumpstart the book. But I am glad that I continued reading.

The dark world that the author created was definitely something you could see as you read, and one I could see being built up if Ms. Callahan decided to turn this into a series. Shiva (the main character) was a great character to read about. She was tough, yet still vulnerable when needed. The author does a great job at creating Shiva’s past, present, and then colliding the two worlds together. As a whole I enjoyed this one.

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

"Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly event, hosted by “Breaking the Spine”, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

My Pick This Week

Description

In the magical underworld of Victorian London, Tessa Gray has at last found safety with the Shadowhunters. But that safety proves fleeting when rogue forces in the Clave plot to see her protector, Charlotte, replaced as head of the Institute. If Charlotte loses her position, Tessa will be out on the street—and easy prey for the mysterious Magister, who wants to use Tessa’s powers for his own dark ends.
With the help of the handsome, self-destructive Will and the fiercely devoted Jem, Tessa discovers that the Magister’s war on the Shadowhunters is deeply personal. He blames them for a long-ago tragedy that shattered his life. To unravel the secrets of the past, the trio journeys from mist-shrouded Yorkshire to a manor house that holds untold horrors, from the slums of London to an enchanted ballroom where Tessa discovers that the truth of her parentage is more sinister than she had imagined. When they encounter a clockwork demon bearing a warning for Will, they realize that the Magister himself knows their every move—and that one of their own has betrayed them.
Tessa finds her heart drawn more and more to Jem, but her longing for Will, despite his dark moods, continues to unsettle her. But something is changing in Will—the wall he has built around himself is crumbling. Could finding the Magister free Will from his secrets and give Tessa the answers about who she is and what she was born to do?
As their dangerous search for the Magister and the truth leads the friends into peril, Tessa learns that when love and lies are mixed, they can corrupt even the purest heart. (Goodreads)

Book Details

Genre: YA, Paranormal

Hardcover: 528 pages

Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry

To Publish: December 6, 2011

ISBN-10: 1416975888

ISBN-13: 978-1416975885

Why I’m Waiting

I love the characters in this series! I can’t wait to see how the love story progresses. It’s the first love triangle in forever that I have read were I equally liked both guys involved, and the girl is not Bella like.

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Description

He roams the moonlit wilderness, his every sense and instinct on high alert. Changeling wolf Connor Macleod and his Pack have never feared anything—until the night human Zoey Tyler barely escapes a rogue werewolf's vicious attack.

As the full moon approaches, Zoey has no idea of the changes that are coming, and only Connor can show her what she is, and help her master the wildness inside. With her initiation into the Pack just days away and a terrifying predator on the loose, the tentative bonds of trust and tenderness are their only weapons against a force red in tooth, claw. . .and ultimate evil.(Goodreads)

Book Details

Review

When I turned the last page of Changeling Moon I was so happy that it’s the first book in the series because I was desperate to know more about these characters. Anyone that knows me knows I love a good shifter romance read and that is just what Changeling Moon is.

Zoe has spent most of her adult life running from her paranormal past. She feels she has finally found a safe place for herself in a small Canadian town. This was all before Zoe was attacked and bitten by a wolf. Not just any wolf—a changeling after human blood. Thankfully for Zoe, Connor (the local vet) rescues her just as she is starting to lose the battle with the wolf. It doesn’t hurt that Conner is also a changeling. Of course Zoe doesn’t know that.

Zoe and Conner were so much fun to read about. I would catch myself smiling as I read their relationship grow. Conner was so high strung over Zoe that he could hardly get physical with her due to lack of control over his wolf. He would try to make a move on her then have to literally run off. And there was Zoe, frustrated and not understanding what was wrong with him. It was really quite funny.

Each author brings their own rules for their shifter world, or in this case changeling world. Harper does a wonderful job of opening Changeling Moon up and adding some unexpected twists that are all her own and I’m sure they will serve this series well. I am excited to see what will happen next in this changeling world.

Monday, June 20, 2011

Description

Sarah and David have survived the zombie apocalypse. They stood side by side and fought the undead, mad scientists, and even bionic monsters until the unthinkable happened. A zombie bite. But not even that could stop them. Now, with a possible cure in hand, they're headed east, looking for a safe zone behind the rumored "Wall." They're feeling pretty optimistic.
That is until Dave stops sleeping and starts lifting huge objects.Eat. Slay. Love.Because they haven't got a prayer. (Goodreads)

Book Details

Review

I don’t usually read novels that include zombies, but I LOVED this book! I loved the idea of a normal married couple surviving in a zombie apocalypse. This is actually the third in the Living with the Dead series. In the first novel, Married with Zombies, Sarah and Dave are on their way to couples therapy when the zombie outbreak takes place in Seattle, WA. They don’t notice until they walk in on their therapist eating the couple that has the appointment before them and have to kill her. Thus begins the rebirth of Sarah and Dave’s marriage, nothing like a zombie apocalypse to bring you together. By the second book, Flip this Zombie, they have the zombie killing down to an art, so they start a zombie extermination business. Yep, zombie extermination.
In Eat, Slay, Love; Dave and Sarah pick up an entertainment journalist who insists on filming everything that happens to them and a strung out lead singer of a British rock band who was in rehab when the apocalypse started. Together they escape zombies (of course) and other survivors that have joined together to form crazy cults all on the way to the “Wall”.

I love the combination of Sarah-I-don’t-trust-anyone and Dave, who is totally loveable. You can tell that they had problems in the past, but really love each other and it never gets sappy.

How great is this book? I smiled the entire time I was reading it...so great that I AM GOING TO BUY IT AND RE-READ IT AGAIN AND AGAIN!!!

So, if you have a dry sense of humor and enjoy humorous, fast-paced zombie novels or really loved the movie Zombieland; stop whatever you are doing and go read this book. Now. Yes, right now.

Happy Endings,

Kelly

5 moons: I absolutely loved it, and will be looking into everything this author writes.

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Description

Once upon a time there was a girl who was special.
This is not her story.
Unless you count the part where I killed her.

Sixteen-year-old Alison has been sectioned in a mental institute for teens, having murdered the most perfect and popular girl at school. But the case is a mystery: no body has been found, and Alison's condition is proving difficult to diagnose. Alison herself can't explain what happened: one minute she was fighting with Tori -- the next she disintegrated. Into nothing. But that's impossible. Right? (Goodreads)

Review

Ultraviolet is one of those books you see, read the description and think huh, well this could be interesting…. Then you start to read it and it’s like someone has put a present in your hands.

Alison wakes up to find herself in a mental hospital. She has no memory of what she has done to land herself in this predicament. As the story moves forward it’s reviled that the police believe Alison’s breakdown is due to her involvement in the disappearance of a girl named Tori, A girl Alison has known was not quite right from the moment she first sat near her in class. As Alison starts to remember what truly happened to Tory she also starts to question her own sanity. What if she is a threat to everyone around her?

As Alison starts new sessions with a new doctor to learn more about her actual disorder witch is Synesthesia the cause of her breakbown comes to light. Alison can taste colors, letters have emotional ties. I don’t think I have ever read anything so well described before. It was in all honesty beautiful and I am saying that about something that is supposed to be a disorder. But at the same time she can get very overwhelmed if to many things happen at one time.

I want to say so much more but I don’t want to give any spoilers. If you like Science Fiction even a little then I don’t see how you wouldn’t like this one. I loved it. Now I have to go stalk R.J. Anderson Goodreads page to see what else she has written.

Happy Reading,

Rebecca

5 moons: I absolutely loved it, and will be looking into everything this author writes

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

"Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly event, hosted by “Breaking the Spine”, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

My Pick this Week

Description

Evie finally has the normal life she’s always longed for. But she’s shocked to discover that being ordinary can be . . . kind of boring. Just when Evie starts to long for her days at the International Paranormal Containment Agency, she’s given a chance to work for them again. Desperate for a break from all the normalcy, she agrees.

But as one disastrous mission leads to another, Evie starts to wonder if she made the right choice. And when Evie’s faerie ex-boyfriend Reth appears with devastating revelations about her past, she discovers that there’s a battle brewing between the faerie courts that could throw the whole supernatural world into chaos. The prize in question? Evie herself.

So much for normal. (Goodreads)

Book Details

Genre: YA, Paranormal

Hardcover: 352 pages

Publisher: HarperTeen

To Publish: July 26, 2011

ISBN-10: 0061985864

ISBN-13: 978-0061985867

Why I’m Waiting

The last book in this series was an extremely exciting roller-coaster ride that I am ready to get back on. Paranormalcy had me laughing, crying, but was also packed with action. I am expecting much of the same for Supernaturally.

Other Books in this Series

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Description

Life can be cruel for a servant girl in 1850s London. Fifteen-year-old Abi is a scullery maid in Greave Hall, an elegant but troubled household. The widowed master of the house is slowly slipping into madness, and the tyrannical housekeeper, Mrs.Cotton, punishes Abi without mercy. But there's something else going on in Greave Hall, too. An otherworldly presence is making itself known, and a deadly secret will reveal itself—-a secret that will shatter everything Abi knows. (Goodreads)

Book Details

Review

I love a haunted house story, so I was really excited to find this on NetGalley. It did not disappoint, this is the sort of book you stay up late to finish, even though you have a pretty good idea of how it will end. Michael Ford builds the story with the right amount of horror. Abigail is a spunky heroine who is grieving for her mother, overworked by the harsh Mrs. Cotton and ready to risk running away to find something better. When Mrs. Cotton brings a strange visitor to the house, Abi and Mrs. Cotton are the only ones present when he is possessed by the spirit of Abi’s mother. Abi has to figure out what her mother is trying to tell her through all the strange happenings around the house. How did Abi’s mother die? What really happened to her father? Only Abi can figure it out. The novel wraps everything up with just the right ending. A wonderfully creepy read, perfect for the beach.

Happy Endings,
Kelly

5 moons: I absolutely loved it, and will be looking into everything this author writes.

Recommended For

Young Teen and up: One of the characters has pre-martial sex and ends up pregnant, very clean read.

Monday, June 13, 2011

Description

New York Times bestselling author Nalini Singh's exhilarating world of shapeshifters and psychics is "paranormal romance at its best" (Publishers Weekly). Now comes the story of an alpha wolf named Hawke used to getting exactly what he wants--and of the only woman who dares tangle with him.

Since the moment of her defection from the PsyNet and into the SnowDancer wolf pack, Sienna Lauren has had one weakness. Hawke. Alpha and dangerous, he compels her to madness.

Hawke is used to walking alone, having lost the woman who would've been his mate long ago. But Sienna fascinates the primal heart of him, even as he tells himself she is far too young to handle the wild fury of the wolf.

Then Sienna changes the rules and suddenly, there is no more distance, only the most intimate of battles between two people who were never meant to meet. Yet as they strip away each other's secrets in a storm of raw emotion, they must also ready themselves for a far more vicious fight…

A deadly enemy is out to destroy SnowDancer, striking at everything they hold dear, but it is Sienna's darkest secret that may yet savage the pack that is her home…and the alpha who is its heartbeat… (Goodreads)

Book Details

Review

For those of you who have no idea what this Psy/changeling series is or who have just never taken the time to try it, well now is your time to get caught up! You will have ten books to feast on. Trust me they are such a delicious read.

Throughout other books we have gotten a taste of who Hawke is but in this book we find out about his past. I loved reading about why his wolf is so close to the surface and the reason he became alpha at fifteen. Even though the story was sad it was necessary for he and Sienna to fit together. After reading Kiss Of Snow I see Hawke in a whole new light. Is it wrong to be jealous of Sienna when she’s not a real person?

Sienna had for some reason always come across as snotty to me. I could not have been more wrong! Being taken away at five, going silent by age nine, and the things Ming did to her as a child. It made my heart break for her as she finally broke down and told her story. Sienna is an amazing woman, I knew she was an X-Psy but I honestly had no idea what that would mean. How tormented her life was by that designation.

Most of the story is spent with Hawke and Sienna. I was worried at how she would work out the age difference, but it was handled beautifully. Even though Sienna is nineteen she has had to be an adult for some time. After Hawke caught up with reality no one has a problem with the age gap. I really enjoyed the fact that Nalini Singh wrote their love out slowly, allowing Hawke and Sienna to get to know each other on a different level since he has been her alpha for so long. I loved that they played games because Sienna had never played as a child. There dance was beautiful.

There were a few side stories going on as well. Lukas and Sasha have their baby. As the characters from the first book you always want to know what is happening in their world. Also Walker (Sienna’s uncle) and Lauren (the SnowDancer healer) have a very sweet romance going that end in their own mating Dance.

Through all of this the war that has been brewing between the Changelings and the Psy has begun. Thus the action in this book is high as well. There were just no low points for me.

If you can’t tell I loved it!

Happy Reading,

Rebecca

5 moons: I absolutely loved it, and will be looking into everything this author writes.